During the first half of this season, the burden of carrying a substandard Los Angeles Lakers team was clearly wearing on LeBron James, mentally and physically.
Although he suffered injuries to both feet, he played through the pain and took a remodeled supporting cast to the Western Conference finals, only to get swept by the Denver Nuggets on Monday.
By all accounts, James and the Lakers should have plenty to be hopeful about next season. But his interesting comments after Game 4 have people wondering about his immediate future and whether he will even be with the Lakers next season.
LeBron James with a cryptic ending to his press conference: “I got a lot to think about. … Just personally, with me moving forward with the game of basketball, I got a lot to think about.”
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) May 23, 2023
LeBron James to ESPN on his thought process going into the offseason:
Q: When you say you got to think about stuff, what thread should we be pulling on that?
A: "If I want to continue to play."
Q: As in next year?
A: "Yeah."
Q: You would walk away?
A: "I got to think about it."— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) May 23, 2023
According to Chris Haynes, it isn’t a foregone conclusion James will be back with the team for the 2023-24 campaign.
Via Bleacher Report:
“Lakers star LeBron James is uncertain if he’ll be with the team when the 2023-24 NBA season starts in the fall, and retirement is under consideration, league sources tell Bleacher Report, TNT,” wrote Chris Haynes.
“LeBron has a lot to weigh, sources say.
“James is expected to take his time in deciding if he’ll return for Year 21. He has two years, $97 million remaining on his contract, but the final year is a player option.”
Perhaps James’ comment was simply coming from a place of frustration and fatigue. After all, he has said repeatedly he wants to play with his son Bronny James, who has committed to playing college ball for the University of Southern California and will not be eligible for the draft until 2024.
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